Song for the Lonely
by Phoenix Night
Summary: Hotohori/Miaka Tamahome has been lost to Miaka and the other seishi, but Hotohori shows Miaka that there are other dreams and loves ou there...


Song for the Lonely

Disclaimer: I do not own Fushigi Yuugi, any of the characters or places. They all belong to Yu Watase, Flower Comics, Viz communications, and Pioneer animation and a few other companies.

An: I know what your all thinking, what an update? Sorry but no, due to the posting on home page I'm led to believe that the admins are basically going to close all accounts with song fics in them, so to avoid having my account closed I'm removing all the lyrics and hopefully I'll get around to editing them and adding some new paragraphs and things to replace the lyrics. sigh and I am working on Faith in the Soul's love and Dawn of a New Beggining. I'm going to start using my profile to post any story news.

The stillness of the morning air, which hung over the capital and Imperial Palace of Konan, was disturbed by the sound of two combatants fighting at full force. Hotohori only managed to dodge the sword blade aiming for his forearm. He countered it with an upwards swing of his sword and locked blades with his opponent, breathing heavily with exertion. His opponent lowered his sword, stepped back and bowed to him.

"You do well, Your Majesty." The man said smiling at the seishi. Hotohori nodded, a small smile of satisfaction on his face. The other man gave another bow to the Emperor and then exited the courtyard, leaving the seishi alone. Hotohori sank down onto a stone bench. Pushing the strands of sweat soaked hair out of his eyes, he let his mind wander to his current problems. Which included both private problems and public problems. Unfortunately his private and public problems were also related.

_If only Tamahome hadn't decided to go to Kutou, we might have summoned Suzaku by now. And Miaka wouldn't be so sad either_. That last though destroyed what little bit of a good mood he had been in. _But Tamahome is lost to us, the Kodoku has made him forget who he is and any memories he has of us. And Mitsukake says there is no cure for it._ Hotohori thought.

The seishi gave another sigh. It was because of the loss of Tamahome, that Suzaku could not be summoned since all seven seishi were needed to summon the deity. The loss of the seishi was also the reason why the Miko, Miaka was so upset. _Miaka loved Tamahome so deeply. When she came back from Kutou without him and told me that she had said good-bye to him..._ Hotohori shook his head. _It looked like her heart had been ripped out of her; like all her happiness was gone and it is._

Hotohori loved Miaka deeply himself, and he wanted nothing more then to hold her and tell her that everything would be all right, that he loved her and that he would always be there for her. But he knew that was not the best thing to do not when she was still so confused and upset. Still, he wouldn't give up hope that maybe she might accept and return his love. _The loss of Tamahome is crushing for her and for the country, I may not be able to love her the way I want to right now; but I can at least be a friend to her. And I can still hope that she might look at me as more then just a friend and love me in return someday._ The Emperor gave a sigh, picked up his sword and exited the courtyard, heading for his rooms.

Miaka gave a sigh of relief as she sat down on the grass in the Imperial Gardens. It was nice to finally be alone and think. While she appreciated her seishi's efforts to cheer her up and make her laugh, all she really wanted was some time alone to sit and deal with her loss. _Tamahome... How? Why? Why did we have to be torn apart like this? Why did it have to happen? Please Tamahome come back to me..._ The miko couldn't stand it anymore and broke down sobbing, crying her hear out.

Hotohori was walking back to his rooms when he heard the sobbing. He followed the sound to its source in the Imperial Gardens. He stopped when he saw Miaka kneeling on the ground crying, her auburn hair spilling over her shoulders obscuring her face. Hotohori's fists clenched for a moment, as he looked at her. He glanced down at his sword, a sudden thought popping into his head. _I fight a battle to protect my country; Miaka fights a battle to mend her heart. Whatever the reason the sad fact is we are both fighting battles._

The girl's sobbing was starting to be too much for the seishi. He dropped his sword on the ground and wordlessly walked over knelt next to the girl taking her into his arms. Miaka shifted until her face was pressed into his shoulder. Five more minutes went by before the girl started to stop crying. Finally she lifted her head up and looked at the Emperor, a small smile on her face. "Thank you, Hotohori." She said. "What else is a friend for?" He said smiling back. "I"m always here for you if you need me, if just to talk or keep you company." He heard a voice call to him; he looked over his shoulder and spotted one of his servants. He sighed regretfully. "But I'm afraid it going to be another time, Miaka." The miko smiled at him. "I understand. And thank you again" The girl said. Hotohori stood up and picked up his sword and walked towards where the servant was, stealing one last look at the girl before resuming his walk back towards his rooms.

Over the next few days it seems Miaka took him at his word. He would often find her either waiting for him when he came out of meetings or she would seek him out in the gardens during one of his few free moments and it seemed it was working. Granted she wasn't back to her old cheerful and optimistic self, but she was in better spirits then she had been before and the air of sadness that had hung over her didn't seem so noticeable anymore.

Hotohori was thinking about the miko's change late one night. He was wandering in the gardens and didn't think anyone was there. He was heading towards the lake and a favorite bench. He was almost there when he spotted a familiar figure sitting on the bench. "Miaka?" He asked, approaching the girl. Miaka jumped and whirled around, visibly calming down when she saw who it was. "Hotohori what are you doing here?" She asked. "I couldn't sleep." He replied, sitting beside her. "I couldn't either."

She looked up at the night sky. "The stars are so bright here, back home you can barely see them." She sighed then and looked down a sudden look of sadness crossing her face. She seemed deep in thought. "What are you thinking about?" He asked. "Tamahome. What things might have been like if he was here. I just feel so lonely sometimes." Hotohori looked at her for a moment then looked back up at the night sky. "One of my teachers told me a story once. He said that every heart has a song, and that Suzaku hears these songs, but if the song becomes lonely sounding then Suzaku tries to bring two hearts together, that way they won't be lonely any more and the song of both hearts will be joyful again. He also told me that sometimes we have to give up a dream sometimes, that like stars a dream can go out and be gone, but a new star just like a new dream can also be born." He looked at the miko. "Do you understand what I mean?"

"I do, and it seems that maybe I found my new dream." She said smiling at him, a strange look in her eyes. On impulse, Hotohori gently placed a hand on her cheek never taking his gaze off her face. She blushed and looked down, then looked back up at him. "Miaka..." On another impulse, Hotohori leaned down towards the girl, and to his slight surprise the girl met him halfway their lips meeting in a simple, loving tender kiss. He gently drew the miko into arms, deepening the kiss. They eventually drew back from each other, smiling at each other.

Hotohori's breath caught in his throat, because for the first time in almost three weeks, Miaka had a true genuine smile on her face. She snuggled closer to him, and his arms tightened around her. He looked up at the night sky, the happy smile still on his face. He leaned back against the tree that was behind the bench, thinking happy thoughts of the future he might have with his beloved miko. He then turned his gaze towards the heavens again; the stars were twinkling brightly in the dark night sky like diamonds. If he didn't know better he would have said the stars were especially bright tonight.


End file.
